Consider adding tax regulations on income from gold bar transfers

Avoid the situation of "tax on tax"

Commenting on this draft law, National Assembly Delegate Le Thi Song An ( Tay Ninh ) suggested that the drafting committee should define more specifically the concept of business income in Clause 1, Article 3; at the same time, it is necessary to clarify that business income must be the income after deducting reasonable and valid expenses incurred in the process of producing and trading goods and services to avoid the situation of calculating tax on total gross revenue inappropriately.

National Assembly Delegate Le Thi Song An (Tay Ninh) speaks. Photo: My Hanh

“This issue has been raised by many localities, units and National Assembly delegations during the process of collecting opinions on the law. Therefore, the drafting committee needs to carefully review it to make appropriate adjustments in the draft law,” emphasized delegate Le Thi Song An.

Regarding the basis for calculating tax on business income in Clause 2, Article 7, the delegate proposed to review the threshold of 200 million VND and the method of calculating tax based on revenue, and at the same time allow individuals with accounting books to calculate tax based on actual income. According to the delegate, the current calculation of tax based on revenue does not accurately reflect the ability to pay taxes, is unfair between subjects and does not encourage individuals to implement accounting, invoice and voucher regimes.

Delegate Le Thi Song An was particularly interested in the provision at Point D, Clause 10, Article 3 on supplementing the tax on income from the transfer of gold bars. The delegate said that this provision would lead to the risk of double taxation because gold was taxed when purchased, and after a period of accumulation, people who sell gold for large investments will be taxed again; at the same time, there is currently no tool to assess how much gold bars people hold, so tax implementation will not be easy.

At the same time, delegates also expressed concerns that the regulation on purchasing gold with invoices could lead to gold shops conducting underground transactions, lacking transparency, and people would tend to hoard gold outside the official system; at the same time, if only targeting gold bars without mentioning other types of gold such as jewelry gold or gold rings, the regulation would not be comprehensive, and it is necessary to consider the long-standing gold accumulation mentality of people and civil servants.

Accordingly, delegates suggested that the drafting committee should consider the feasibility of this regulation to both ensure fairness for the people and effectively control the gold market.

Excluding income from life insurance contracts from taxable income

Regarding tax-exempt income from night work and overtime in Clause 8, Article 4, the National Assembly Deputies of Tay Ninh province said that it is necessary to clearly define which part of the additional wages (due to night work or overtime) is exempt from tax, whether it is all or only a part; clearly specify which time frame is considered night, or add references to the Labor Code, otherwise it will lead to difficulties in implementation, can be exploited to avoid taxes and can lead to the risk of arbitrary application between industries or localities.

Overview of the discussion at Group 3. Photo: My Hanh

Regarding tax-exempt income from insurance compensation as stipulated in Clause 11, Article 4, the National Assembly Deputies of Tay Ninh province proposed that there is no need to list income from life insurance contract compensation, non-life insurance, or compensation for work accidents in the tax exemption clause, because this type of income is not included in the taxable income as stipulated in Article 3.

National Assembly Deputy Tran Quoc Quan speaks. Photo: My Hanh

Commenting on this draft law, National Assembly member Tran Quoc Quan (Tay Ninh) proposed excluding income from the implementation or termination of life insurance contracts to include them in the tax exemption list. According to the representative, the nature of life insurance is that people contribute a sum of money in the form of periodic savings, and when the life insurance contract ends, people receive back the principal and a portion of the interest.

Meanwhile, the current regulations (in Clause 6 and Clause 11, Article 4) clearly stipulate that the interest from insurance contracts is exempt from personal income tax, and the compensation from life and non-life insurance contracts is also excluded or exempted. Therefore, the regulation to exclude income from the implementation of life insurance contracts from taxable subjects is reasonable.

Regarding income from transferring auctioned license plates, delegate Tran Quoc Quan proposed to consider the regulations on this tax. According to the delegate, tax should only be imposed on the additional income from transferring car license plates; at the same time, the initial investment should be excluded from the taxable subject. Because in reality, auction participants have to spend a huge amount of money to own a car license plate, and this amount is paid into the state budget, and this license plate becomes the property of the people. Taxing only on the additional income would be more appropriate and reflect the true nature of individual income.

National Assembly Delegate Hoang Thi Thanh Thuy (Tay Ninh) speaks. Photo: My Hanh

Commenting on the draft Law on Personal Income Tax (amended), National Assembly member Hoang Thi Thanh Thuy (Tay Ninh) was interested in the regulation on tax exemption for income from interest on Government bonds . The delegate suggested considering expanding this policy to income from interest on bonds issued by local authorities. Because, currently, many localities have to mobilize large resources to invest in infrastructure development. Tax exemption for this income will contribute to encouraging investment, creating conditions for localities, especially disadvantaged localities, to be more proactive in mobilizing capital sources, in line with the policy of strengthening decentralization, delegation of power and enhancing the autonomy of local authorities.

During the group discussion, the National Assembly deputies of Tay Ninh province also requested the drafting committee to consider and provide stricter, clearer and more transparent regulations on income from inheritance and gifts. In cases where the list of taxable objects (such as securities, capital contributions, real estate, or assets that must be registered for ownership and use) is not comprehensive enough, it is necessary to add a general regulation that applies to all types of gifts with a value exceeding a certain threshold (minimum threshold), in order to serve as a unified basis for determining and taxing personal income. At the same time, the Government is assigned to specify in detail the minimum threshold for tax.

Source: https://daibieunhandan.vn/can-nhac-viec-bo-sung-quy-dinh-danh-thue-doi-voi-thu-nhap-tu-chuyen-nhuong-vang-mieng-10394517.html